Aspera, Inc., creators of next-generation software technologies that
move the world’s big data at maximum speed, today announced that Brown
Bag Films, Europe’s successful creative-led animation studio, has
deployed Aspera Sync to enable real-time post-production collaboration
between its partner studios in Ireland, Mumbai, Singapore and Indonesia.
Aspera Sync offers a scalable and multidirectional file-synchronisation
and replication solution for moving big data over large distances at
high speed. It provides a high-performance alternative, up to 100 times
faster than traditional sync and replication technologies, and
eliminates the inefficiencies and costs of manually shipping tapes.

Brown Bag Films relies on worldwide partner studios, often in far-flung
locations, for portions of their animation workflow. To successfully
manage the ever greater number of projects in its pipeline, and
increasingly handle the big data demands of 3D and HD productions, Brown
Bag Films needed a real-time 24/7 collaboration solution to enable quick
and easy file-sharing with its worldwide partners. Other key
requirements for the file solution were that it had to be fast, reliable
and stable while ensuring no file corruption occurred during transfers.

FTP was unable to meet Brown Bag’s stringent requirements. Even with a
dedicated team to manage file transfers and content movement across
sites, Brown Bag Films experienced partial transfers leading to
corrupted files, white the latency between the site in Ireland and the
overseas studios caused transfers to almost grind to a complete halt.
Brown Bag Films needed a more stable and sophisticated mechanism to
reliably move and synchronise the large data sets. 'We had reached
capacity in terms of the work we could realistically handle and the
number of new projects we could take on at any one time,’ said Brian
Gilmore, head of technology at Brown Bag Films. ‘We wanted to be able to
maximise our available global resources and implement 24-hour production
without being hindered by the transfer of large files. After reviewing
the offerings out there, Aspera Sync proved the best solution that could
meet our demanding needs.’

Brown Bag Films selected and deployed Aspera Sync to move and replicate
file sets between sites in the background and leveraged a web-based
production tracking system to keep track of all replicated files and
versions in a "hands-free" operation. Users at the overseas studios
simply access files via storage mounted to their desktops. When users
place the finished files back onto the mounted drive, Aspera Sync
automatically transfers all new or modified files at high speed back to
Ireland, where Brown Bag Films’ internally developed tools create a
"package" of files, ensuring correct naming convention.

To support smaller animation studios on an ad-hoc basis, Brown Bag Films
deployed Aspera Connect server, which allows anyone to download files
from the central server using an install-on-demand browser plug-in. This
overcomes previous issues of users having to install FTP clients and
makes the whole experience a lot easier for smaller studio partners.

Incorporating Aspera Sync software into its existing pipeline has
enabled Brown Bag Films to integrate more closely with its overseas
partner studios, and facilitate real-time collaboration between artists
and producers across time zones. Gilmore added: ‘Aspera Sync has
revolutionised our data transfer workflow, helping us to take on four
times as much work at any given time by splitting it between locations –
all in the knowledge that quality will be maintained no matter where the
file is active in the world. As a company, it has helped us become more
productive, at a glance increasing efficiencies across our data flow
management.’

‘We’re delighted Brown Bag Films has selected Aspera Sync to support its
global workflows,’ said Bruce Brewer, European sales director at Aspera.
‘The ability to keep multiple sites in sync at high speed, without
needing to employ production assistants for file transfer monitoring or
worry about quality control, drastically increases efficiency and will
continue to support Brown Bag Films’ rapid business growth.’

About Brown Bag Films

Brown Bag Films™ are one of Europe’s most successful creative-led
animation studios. Since 1994, their Dublin-based headquarters have
produced cutting-edge animation for the international market and have
twice been awarded an Academy Award® nomination.

Brown Bag Films' much-loved TV shows are viewed by millions of children
worldwide and include Doc McStuffins, Peter Rabbit, Henry
Hugglemonsters, Noddy in Toyland, and The Octonauts. With a second
studio in LA, Brown Bag Films are committed to producing the
highest-quality, cross-platform animation with strong stories and
engaging characters.

Aspera is the creator of next-generation transport technologies that
move the world’s data at maximum speed regardless of file size, transfer
distance and network conditions. Based on its patented fasp™ protocol,
Aspera software fully utilizes existing infrastructures to deliver the
fastest, most predictable file-transfer experience. Aspera’s core
technology delivers unprecedented control over bandwidth, complete
security and uncompromising reliability. Approximately 2000
organizations across a variety of industries on six continents rely on
Aspera software for the business-critical transport of their digital
assets.